Elementus Crystalis
by TenshiNoAkuma
Summary: -discontinued- A novelisation of FFV. The world is such a stupid little thing, always getting into trouble. This time it has called the heroes, Bartz, Reina, Galuf and Faris, to save it from being destroyed. And so it begins...Ch2Whispering Wind is up!
1. Prologue

Author Notes: Bwahahaha! Only doing this because I'm in a huge slump for my original fic, and I need to practise writing and stuff. And that I'm temporarily obsessed. I don't enjoy many novelisations of Final Fantasy games simply because they stick too much to the original script and not breathing life into it. What's the point of reading a fic where every word is familiar to you? I'm hoping to not do the same as some others. I'm gonna be taking some artistic license here, so I hope you enjoy.

Standard disclaimer (i.e. I do not own FFV in any way) applies.

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* * *

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_During times of trouble, the world has called for heroes to save it from almost certain oblivion. There have always been people willing to take up the task? Why? Why do they do it? Is it to stop evil from spreading? Is it for their belief in justice? Is it for the great riches that are found along the way? Is it the fame that comes about afterwards? Or is it just because there's the chance that there won't be a tomorrow to wake up to if they don't do it? Whatever the reason is, the world is always returned relatively safe and sound...until it's dumb enough to get itself into trouble again._

* * *

Final Fantasy V – Elementus Crystalis

Part 1 – First World

Prologue

* * *

The beginning is always an important part,

Though where it's situated isn't always in the beginning.

The beginning could be at the end,

Or even in the middle of another beginning.

But for now,

_This_ is the beginning.

* * *

The old dragon, the last of the Hiryuu, napped in its home at the top of Tycoon Castle. If it was awake, it could simply turn its head for a marvellous view of the rolling plains near Tycoon. During its better days, the Hiryuu would lie down and lose itself looking at the thick forests and high mountains that seemed to stretch up and touch the sky. However, today the beautiful view was obscured by the unusually dark clouds hovering above. The clouds were particularly ominous as they loomed over the castle, adding to the sense of impending doom that even the sleeping Hiryuu could feel.

"Father! Must you leave?"

The king of Tycoon looked down at his daughter beside him, drawing a long, weary sigh of one who has been kept awake until the early hours of the morning for too many nights. "Yes, Reina," he replied, "I must. The wind feels...odd. I am going to check up on the crystal in the Wind Shrine, to make sure nothing is amiss."

He didn't mention the knotting in the pit of his stomach that made him _positive_ something immensely horrible was going to happen. And that he feared for his last daughter's as well as his kingdom's safety.

The young woman opened her mouth to both protest and tell him she wanted to go too, but he held up an armoured hand to stop her.

"No, Reina," he said quietly, "you can't come with me. Tycoon will need someone to watch over it when I'm gone."

He smiled slightly at the disappointed face she was pulling. "Don't worry," he said, fondly ruffling her pink coloured hair, "I'll be back soon. I promise."

Whispering quietly into the Hiryuu's ear, the beast laboriously stretched its limbs to remove the stiffness from its sleep. Then with a yawn that could be mistaken as a roar, the dragon allowed the king of Tycoon to climb onto its back. As the pair took off, Reina forced her face into a smile and slowly waved at their retreating backs.

* * *

A pirate ship sailed unheeded upon the high seas, the waters unusually calm. Her crew went about their work, though at a more comfortable pace than normal. But there was a sense of unease aboard despite the welcome break from recent battles against nature. The captain stood upon the prow, gazing at the blue sky and watching the small waves roll by through half-slitted, emerald green eyes. His long purple hair flowed out behind him, a beautiful ocean in itself.

Suddenly, something changed. It was a small change, but it was noticeable to all the world. The captain barely changed is expressions, other than to narrow his eyes the slightest bit more.

"Uh, Capt'n Faris?" said the first mate, coming up behind his captain with a questioning look on his face.

Faris slowly blinked, sensing something unnatural amiss, then murmured, "The wind stopped."

* * *

The light blue light of a portal played over the bearded old man's determined features. It swirled before him invitingly, its 'flames' dancing just out of reach. They danced a merry waltz from their invisible confines. Then, the light flickered for a moment. The man felt a shiver run down his spine as he stood in front of the portal. He knew what it meant. He knew what would happen if he delayed much longer. "The wind!" he cried, "I must hurry!"

* * *

Reina sat on the balcony where her father and the old dragon had taken off, taking comfort in the wind whipping about her face and flowing through her short hair. She watched a bird in the star dotted sky lazily ride on the breeze with nary a thought in its mind. She felt her fears float away with the soaring bird, feeling more at peace than she had been for a long time.

Then the wind disappeared. Squawking, the bird frantically flapped its wings to stop itself from plummeting to the ground. Reina stood up and looked up at the spot in they sky she had last seen her father before he faded from view, her worry coming back tenfold. "Oh no! The wind! Father!"

* * *

The king of Tycoon dashed through the marble corridors of the Wind Shrine, the sense of urgency pounding in the back of his head. It was quiet, _too _quiet. He increased the speed of his run, taking the stairs to the next floor three at a time.

His footsteps rung uncomfortably loudly through the passages as he sprinted down them. He felt a prickling sensation run through his body, like a hundred little needles poking his skin. He couldn't shake off the feeling his every move was being watched. Even the vines that curled around the sculpted pillars seemed to cast unnaturally long shadows. He quickened his pace further.

Bursting through the huge double doors of the Wind Shrine, the king of Tycoon reached the holding place of the huge crystal of wind. Just in time to see the marvellous crystal shatter into a multitude of glittering shards. He was too late.

* * *

Author Notes: Insert stupid remark of some sort here. 


	2. Stealing from a Buccaneer

Author Notes: I hope I don't stuff the characters up too much. I feel so inspired, but I have a big fat headache blocking my thought processes. Hmm...not really sure what the characters 'usually' wear, there are so many different versions as well as the whole jazz with the job classes. --;; 'Crystals of the Elements' is a working title. If someone can come up with a more fitting name, please tell me.

Reviewer Responses

Lady Savage – Oops, sorry! Good to hear you're gonna continue writing it though. When do you think you'll be able to have it online? I think you'd probably do a much better job than me. I edited the prologue a little more after posting it initially (sleep is good), but when I received your review, the edited version hadn't been updated yet. I'll be more descriptive with the characters later on, when they join up together. (makes mental note) Thanks for the encouragement and critique!

* * *

Final Fantasy V – Elementus Crystalis

Part 1 - First World

Chapter 1 – Stealing from a Buccaneer

* * *

Holes in pockets,

Holes in plots.

Holes in the sky,

Holes in time.

Is there _anything_,

That can't have a hole?

* * *

Thin tendrils of smoke from the small campfire wrapped themselves around Bartz's calloused fingers before floating away up into the sky. His loose, sleeveless blue tunic in particular was well worn from his travels (and mishaps). Underneath, he wore a long sleeved white shirt, dirty and stitched up in the places he had torn it. Bartz made a mental note to get new boots at the next town he visited; he could feel the ground through the ones he was wearing.

His faithful chocobo companion warked softly and nuzzled his beak into Bartz's mop of brown hair. Bartz laughed and tried to fend off his feathery friend. The bird warked in excitement, fluffing his feathers until he was a huge fluff ball that was bigger than his master. The bird cocked his head to the side, as if he'd heard something, then looked up and warked in alarm.

"What is it, Boko?" Bartz asked his chocobo, tilting his head up so he could see what was wrong. "Holy-!" he gasped.

A pockmarked meteor sailed past and smashed into a valley nearby. Bartz and Boko looked at each other in bewilderment. _What in the world?_ thought Bartz in wonder.

He pinched himself hard on his arm and looked back at the crash-landed meteor in the distance. Boko gave him the chocobo version of raising an eyebrow. "It's not a dream!" Bartz widened his eyes, "What the heck?" Gesturing to Boko, he said, "C'mon, Boko, let's go!"

The bird warked softly in agreement and patiently waited for Bartz to put out their little campfire and gather up his things. Swiping the last of the food from the dead campfire, the young man saddled up Boko and rode towards the meteor. As the pair drew nearer, Bartz swore he could see someone lying in the long grass. Curious, he pulled up and hopped off Boko.

A beautiful young woman lay out cold, her short pink hair framing her small petite face. Her clothing looked too rich to be entirely practical, but in terms of rich clothing, that was about as good as it got. A golden neck band with a ruby or garnet encircled her neck, a matching one around her waist. She wore smaller, less decorative bands around her narrow wrists.

Boko squawked out a warning as a pair of goblins leaped out from their hiding place. Bartz instinctively took a dive forward over the woman as they leaped onto where he was before. Rolling onto his feet, he turned and drew his broad sword, all too willing to fight the goblins.

"The girl is ours!" screeched a goblin, pointing a bony finger at Bartz.

"Not if I can help it!" he said, leaping towards them, sword in hand. Boko bounced up and down as he watched Bartz duck under the goblin's swipes. Bartz dodged to the side and swung his blade in a downward arc, cleaving the goblin's skull cleanly in two. The other quickly moved in to take advantage of Bartz's turned back. Jabbering in triumph, the goblin reached out with its claws, only to find its legs cut out from underneath. It screeched horribly as it fell backwards, blood spurting from the stumpy remains of its legs. It rolled over and crawled slowly in a futile attempt to escape. Bartz, not liking to let even goblins suffer for long, put it out of its misery by plunging his sword through the creature's heart.

Wiping his blade clean on the goblin's body before sheathing it, Bartz checked up on the woman. Her eyes fluttered open, revealing emerald orbs. She sat up, looking slightly confused and extremely grossed out by the dead bodies of the goblins, especially the one leaking brains. Extending a hand to help her up, Bartz asked, "Are you alright?"

Taking his hand, the woman said, uncertain, "Yes. At least, I think so." She brushed herself down before smiling at Bartz. "Thank you for helping me. My name is Reina."

Bartz nodded. "I'm Bartz, and my chocobo's name is Boko."

"Pleased to meet you," Reina replied politely.

She looked over her shoulder at the large, ugly meteor. The force of its landing had torn up the grass and pushed the sand into large ridges beside it. "This came falling from the sky," she said, "The blast sent me flying and knocked me out."

She folded her arms, thinking. _Does the meteor have something to do with the wind stopping? What could it mean?_ she wondered. Aloud, she said to Bartz, "Thank you once again for helping me. I wish I could repay your kindness, but I must be going. I have urgent business to attend to."

Reina turned to run off, still a little flustered at recent events. Bartz blinked, before his brain registered that this pink haired woman was leaving. "Hey, wait a sec!" he shouted, running after her.

She suddenly stopped, her attention directed elsewhere, and Bartz, completely unprepared, crashed into her. They fell down together in a tangle of arms and legs. Reina coughed and crawled out from under Bartz. "Did you hear that?" she asked Bartz, feeling a little breathless from being squashed.

Rubbing his sore head, Bartz replied, "Hear what? Ow..."

"Ugh...My head..."

Reina perked up. "That!" she cried, getting to her feet. "Over there!" she said, running over to the side of the meteor.

Bartz slowly got to his feet and followed her. He found the woman kneeling beside an old bearded man, his light, silvery hair attempting to deny his true age. He wore a jerkin over a simple doublet, a sash tied loosely around his waist. The man sat up and held his head in pain.

"Are you alright?" Reina asked, concern evident on her face.

The man looked around in bafflement. "Where am I?" he said, eyes darting around like an animal trapped in a corner, "What happened? I can't remember a thing!"

Bartz tilted his head as he remembered someone else who had acted like that before. What had happened to him again? He hit his head and lost his memory? What was this sort of memory loss called again? Oh yeah...

"Amnesia. You might have amnesia from hitting your head," he pointed out helpfully.

"Galuf!" the old man exclaimed out of nowhere.

"Huh?" Bartz gave the man a strange look, thinking he must have lost a few screws when he hit his head. _Okay, Bartz, he has amnesia. He's allowed to be a little...odd._

Reina had a carefully blank look on her face, as she said, "I'm sorry, what?"

The old man turned to face her. "Galuf," he repeated, "I remember now. That's my name."

"Do you remember anything else?" Reina asked kindly.

Galuf hung his head sadly. "No. No...nothing other than my name."

Reina gently patted the Galuf on the back. "Don't worry, I'm sure you'll get your memory back soon," she said with an encouraging smile, "I'm really very sorry, but I must get to the Wind Shrine."

"The Wind Shrine!" Galuf gasped, jumping to his feet, all signs of depression disappearing, "I _know_ I need to go there! I'll go with you!"

"But..."

"_Please_ take me with you!" begged the old man.

Reina paused, then nodded. There couldn't be much harm in letting Galuf tag along, right? Turning to Bartz, she asked, "What about you? Are you going to be coming with us?"

Bartz shook his head. "Nah, I'll be wandering around with Boko."

"...Then it's farewell," Reina said, slightly disappointed, "Thank you for all your help, Bartz. Goodbye."

Galuf waved his farewell, and the pair left. Bartz watched them until they were out of sight and walked over towards Boko. Boko crooned and rubbed his head against Bartz's face. Bartz ruffled his loyal bird's head feathers before taking Boko's reins. He would be walking for a little while today.

"Let's go, Boko."

* * *

The beautiful, flaming colours of sunset filled the sky. The sun's rays dipped low, reluctantly relinquishing its hold during the day to the stars of the night. Bartz rode Boko, enjoying the marvellous scenery, trusting Boko to steer himself properly as they rode north east. However, the trust was a little misplaced when Boko stopped his gallop, sending Bartz flying over the bird's head.

"Owowowow! What was that for?" grumbled Bartz, picking himself off the ground.

Boko jumped up and down, pointing a wing towards the valley ahead and flapping his wings. "Wark! Wark wark!"

Bartz shielded his eyes against the light of the sun with his hand and stared off in the direction Boko was indicating. At least, the direction he thought his chocobo wanted him to look at. "Is that...those two from earlier?" he muttered to himself, "Reina and Galuf?" Squinting a little more, he saw several other figures giving chase. "Goblins!"

Suddenly, the ground began to shake and boulders from the mountains beside the valley rolled down. Bartz heard a high pitched scream. Quickly saddling back up on Boko, Bartz nudged the bird into a gallop towards the faraway figures of Reina and Galuf.

Boko warked in alarm as a whole section of the mountain started sliding down in rumbling mass to bar their path. Bartz gave his chocobo a gentle kick, silently urging Boko to sprint as hard as he could across the trembling ground. Despite the danger, a few goblins diverted their attention from escaping the landslides and quakes to attacking Bartz. He ducked their attacks and rode harder. With a roar of finality, the heap of sand, boulders and pebbles slid down into the valley and buried the goblins under their weight.

Bartz rode determinedly on, thanking the spirits that he and Boko had managed to pass through before the mountain gave way to the landslide. He found Reina and Galuf unconscious on the ground, half buried in loose rocks and pebbles. Hopping off Boko, Bartz pushed away the rocks and unceremoniously loaded them onto the chocobo as quickly as he could.

"Go Boko, hurry!" Bartz whispered in Boko's ear.

The chocobo nibbled on a strand of Bartz's hair before warking softly and took off to the other end of the mountain, taking care not to let his passengers fall. Bartz followed at a slower pace, but with no less urgency. He ran, dodging the still falling boulders and slaying the goblins that tried to follow Boko. He winced as one of the beastly humanoids managed to tear his shirt sleeve and scrape his arm. In retaliation, he swung his broadsword in a deadly arc that left the creature half as tall as it was before.

He ran past the fork in the valley, noting that the path to Tule was completely blocked by the collapse of the mountains beside it, impassable unless you were a mountain cat or something. Finally, after slipping a few times from the heaving earth and loose pebbles, he reached the end of the valley where the landslides stopped. Boko was waiting for him, with an almost smug look on his feathery face. Bartz sighed in defeat. "Alright, you won...again."

He unstrapped Reina and Galuf from Boko, laying them down gently on the ground. Bartz then gathered some dry branches from around the area and made a small campfire as the night completely took over the day's job. He sat down by the fire and pulled his items pouch closer to him. Rummaging around in it, he found a potion and a piece of cloth. Tipping the potion bottle, Bartz dripped a few drops onto the cloth and dabbed it onto his cuts, wincing as the liquid stung the scratches.

Satisfied that his wounds were healed, he replaced the bottle and cloth and fished out a needle and thread. Bartz took off his shirt and began stitching up the tear, muttering a few choice words when the thread flatly refused to go through the needle's eye.

Reina stirred at the sound of his voice, groaning softly. "Hey," Bartz greeted warmly, looking up from his stitching.

"Bartz!" Reina exclaimed, glad the night hid the reddening of her cheeks from her surprise in seeing him shirtless. Pushing away her embarrassment, she said, "Thank you for helping us."

Bartz waved away her thanks. "There's no need for thanks," he said, going back to darning his shirt, "You might be stuck here for a while. The landslide collapsed most of the cliffs and has blocked the path to Tule. You won't be able to climb it unless you've got some climbing gear, and even then, it'd be pretty dangerous."

Reina's eyes widened in panic. "But I _must_ get to the Wind Shrine!"

A soft moan came from where Galuf lay. "Wind Shrine...must...hurry..." they heard him mumble.

Bartz sighed, ending the last stitch needed for his shirt. Packing the needle and thread back where they belonged, he slipped his shirt and tunic back on. "Sheez, this old geezer too," he muttered to himself. To Reina, he said, "You know what? I'll come with you."

Reina's jaw dropped. Quickly shutting it again, she gasped, "Really?"

He scratched the back of his head, wondering if it really was a good idea. "My dad wanted me to travel the world and see it for myself," he explained, "Besides, I wanna know what happened to the wind."

Galuf rolled over with an evil glint in his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, say whatever you want," he said with a grin, "You just want to be with this pretty lady!"

Bartz and Reina's eyes almost popped out of their sockets in shock. Together they both glared daggers at the laughing old man. "You were awake, you old fart!" Bartz said accusingly.

"Course I was!" Suddenly becoming serious, Galuf said, "How are we going to get to the Wind Shrine now?"

Bartz remained silent, mentally drawing up a map of the area. There wasn't much to go on. As far as he could remember, all that lay at the end of the path was a dead end. There was no harm in trying though. "Let's get some rest and follow this road tomorrow," he said.

* * *

"Ahoy there, Stargazer!" bellowed Faris across the stretch of ocean separating the two ships.

"Ahoy, Ororo, or however ye say yer bloody ship's name!" Stargazer's captain bellowed back.

Faris' smaller and faster schooner, 'ororO', pulled up next to the much larger Stargazer. The pirate crew of the Stargazer welcomed the corsairs from the ororO and moved aside to let them board. Faris turned his head side to side, examining the condition of the Stargazer. "Looks like you've bin drifting fer a while, Dayone," he said while both pirate crews mingled, exchanging hearty greetings.

The captain of the Stargazer laughed. "I dunt have no way to git around, unlike yerself," he said, "The wind chose a damn bad time t' disappear on us. Me precious baby's loaded with loot but not a scrap o' food or a drop o' water's left. Had to start throwing some o' th' jewels overboard and start fishin' would ye believe it?"

Faris gave him a wry smile, watching some of his men head back to the ororO to bring back supplies for the Stargazer's crew. He nodded his assent when they turned to him for permission.

"How're ye getting' around with the wind gone, anyways?" said Dayone, taking out a small bottle of whisky from inside his coat pocket. He took a swig from it before offering it to Faris. All he got was a mysterious smile from the other captain as he accepted the bottle.

"Secret o' th' ship?" Dayone asked, already knowing he wouldn't get a straight answer from his fellow captain.

"You're gonna hafta pay me back double, or you get nothin', Dayone," Faris said, changing the subject. He took a mouthful of the whisky before he passed it back to the Stargazer's captain.

"Ah, ye always drive a hard bargain, scud."

"You're lucky I'm fool enough to trust you to live. I'd drag your sorry excuse of a ship back with me if I could," Faris replied, "But I can't. My ship couldn't take your bunch of logs anywhere, even if I'd tried."

"Ye never told me what yer puny ship's screwed up name meant," Dayone said.

Faris smirked. "And I'll never tell ya, you mangy ol' sea dog. There'll always be somethin' that you'll never know." Faris turned to his crew. "C'mon, men! We're headin' back home!" he yelled.

* * *

The group followed the path, Bartz leading Boko by the reins with Reina walking a little ahead. He noted that the path had barely any signs that it had been used by anyone. Perhaps they were the first people to walk this road in years. He had little hope that they would find another way to Tule.

"A cave!" called Reina, pointing ahead.

"Must've been uncovered by the quake earlier," said Bartz. Now that he thought about it, he remembered hearing about this cave. It wasn't populated with as many monsters as most caverns were, but it was a terrible maze of tunnels. Yes, it _was_ possible to get to Tule through here, but the chances of getting through without getting lost and dying was slim, even slimmer if they wanted to get through fast. He didn't share his distressing thoughts with Reina and Galuf; he didn't want to worry them any more than they already were.

"You two go ahead. I'll catch up," Bartz said to Galuf and Reina. They nodded and stepped into the yawning entrance.

Bartz regretfully patted his faithful chocobo. "Stay here, Boko," he murmured to the bird.

Boko stuck out his short tongue and licked Bartz one the cheek. The brunette laughed and gave Boko one last pat before he followed Reina and Galuf into the small cavern.

Darkness called this cave home, the light from the entrance only making the shadows loom, taller and darker than before. "Wait a tick!" Bartz called out to the other two as he rummaged through his bag.

They paused, watching him wrap an oil soaked rag around a small, thick piece of wood. Holding the unlit torch, he fished around in his pockets for his tinderbox with his free hand. Finding it, he struck a match and lit the torch, casting an orange yellow glow around the cave. "Good idea," Reina praised while he hoisted his bag back onto his shoulders. Galuf nodded his approval.

Bats hung upside down from the ceiling, slumbering in relative peace, though a few squeaked a swooped by the group. The odd few scuttling noises were rather disconcerting, but when Bartz lowered the torch to see what was making all the noise, he saw...

"A crab?" he said to no one in particular.

Reina squatted down in front of the white crab and examined it while small crustacean waved its pincers. "These creatures only hang around caves where there's water nearby," she said, picking the crab up by one of its many legs.

"How did you know that?" asked Galuf, watching in mild interest as Reina set the wriggling crab back onto the floor. Relieved to have its legs back on solid ground, the creature scurried back into the shadows.

Reina thought about all those 'useful' lessons in the past. From what spells did what to the percentage of people who slept on their side (she was one of them), they tried to shove every bit of knowledge available to Tycoon into her head. There was only so much she could learn before she started forgetting information from previous lessons, though.

"Oh...It was just something I'd learnt when I was little," she replied, thoughts a million miles away. How many times had she wished she could have someone to talk to during those long, boring classes? She vaguely remembered someone else who had once been there. But then she had disappeared a long, long time ago...

They kept going through the cavern. A little further in, a large pool of water gave off a soft blue light. Bartz and Reina were hesitant about drinking water that glowed. However, after watching Galuf slurp it up without falling over and twitching, they joined him. The water was cool and marvellously refreshing, washing away all their aches and pains.

The trio continued onwards, Galuf and Reina wondering how long it would take to reach Tule by these tunnels. "Hold it!" Galuf sniffed. "Fresh air!" he cried joyously, taking off with a spring in his step that belied his age.

_Strange, _Bartz thought to himself, _We shouldn't be anywhere near Tule yet._ Nevertheless, he and Reina went after Galuf, eager to be out of the stuffy caves.

The sun greeted them brightly with its blinding rays. After waiting a few moments for their eyes to adjust to the change in light, they found themselves standing together on a cliff looking over a small plain of grass. Tall, vicious looking mountains surrounded the plain, forming a natural barrier. And there was no breeze to brush away their weariness.

"You're kidding!" Galuf exclaimed while Reina sat down, exhausted, on the cliff, "This is a dead end?"

"At least there's a nice view of the ocean," Reina commented, always wanting to look on the cheerful side.

They dallied for a while, loath to go back into the cave. Then something appeared out on the horizon. Bartz shielded his eyes from the sun and stared at the tiny speck far, far away. "Is that...a ship?"

Reina got back onto her aching feet, squinting at the ship as it gradually became larger as it drew closer. "How does it sail without wind?" she wondered aloud.

Galuf scratched his beard thoughtfully. Several theories flapped around his head, from several little birds tugging at the sails to the strange notion of having long wooden poles with flat ends pulling through the water. He dismissed the idea, instead reluctantly saying, "Let's go back. We have to hurry."

* * *

Faris stood upon the prow of his ship, enjoying the 'wind' from the movement of the schooner as she sailed towards what he and his crew called home. It was quite the life, living on the high seas with the scenery changing every day. You could go anywhere. Worus? Kerwin? Sure thing, though Karlboss was making it far too dangerous to go there these days. The Ancient Library? Sure thing, though why someone'd want to go there was beyond Faris' comprehension. Besides, it was a big pain in the behind getting there, having to go by the underwater passages and all.

A roar seemed to come from underneath the schooner. Faris grinned and leaned forward on the bow. "You can see it too, can't ya, Syldra?" he said with an unusually large smile. "We're home!"

* * *

Bartz, Reina and Galuf continued down through the tunnels, occasionally pausing at splits in the passages before marking the walls and going down one. Reina's mind was occupied with worry for her father. She wished they would hurry, but she quickly discovered that the network of tunnels were difficult to navigate through without getting lost and ending up where you were before. Reina was so engrossed in her thoughts, she barely heard Bartz's whispered warning.

"Everyone! Down!" hissed Bartz as he spotted a pirate looking around. Reina and Galuf ducked behind the ledge with Bartz as he hurriedly put out the torch.

The pirate peered into the darkness, unsure whether the light he saw was just his imagination. Shrugging, the pirate muttered to himself as he fumbled around with something by the far corner. There was a small "shick" sound and a relatively soft scraping sound as a door slid open in the wall. The pirate looked over his shoulder one last time before walking through. The rocky door moved back to its original position. If it wasn't for the fact they had seen it with their own eyes and knew it was there, Bartz, Reina and Galuf would've walked right past the secret door and continued through the maze of tunnels.

Galuf climbed onto the ledge and walked to the corner, feeling around for the switch to open the door. "Are you two going to help or not?" he called, calloused fingers running over stone.

Bartz nodded. Maybe they'd find something that would help them on their journey through the tunnels. He had his doubts about whether Reina or Galuf, or even he himself, would have the survival skills to make it through. Reina seemed a little unused to travelling around to say the least and Galuf, after all, _was _an old man.

Both Bartz and Reina clambered up onto the ledge and helped Galuf look for the button. After a few moments, Reina said, "Hey, I found it!" She pushed the switch.

The stone door scraped back laboriously to reveal the open doorway once more, as if it didn't appreciate being moved around so much. The trio stepped through and hid around the corner as a pirate walked past. "Must be a pirate hideout," Bartz murmured, "The ship earlier might've been theirs."

"Do you think they'll let us borrow their ship?" Reina innocently asked.

Galuf and Bartz turned and stared at Reina incredulously. "What?" she said, tilting her head to the side. "There's nothing wrong with that, right?"

Bartz waved a hand in front of Reina's face. "Um, hello? Is there anybody in there? We're talking about _pirates_ here."

Galuf peered cautiously around the corner. "Why don't we just steal their ship?" he suggested with a mischievous grin much like the Cheshire Cat's broad smile.

Bartz turned to face Galuf, surprise etched into his features. "Heh, I didn't know you were so daring, old man," he said with a grin to match Galuf's.

Galuf laughed. "I do my best!" he replied, "Let's go!"

The two men quietly crept around the corner. Reina hesitated before she followed the pair. This..._robbery_...was going against the principles of honesty she had been taught. And yet, here she was, following these two to steal a ship! From pirates no less. Despite the fact her brain was telling her this was wrong, a part of her couldn't care less what her brain thought, and urged her to join Bartz and Galuf.

_It's for an important cause_, Reina reasoned, _All that matters is that I get to the Wind Shrine as quickly as possible._ Nodding to herself, she strengthened her resolve and scurried after Bartz and Galuf.

The trio kept low, thanking the stars that the resident pirates were snoozing on the job. They tried to make as little noise as possible, freezing when a pirate napping in front of the door next to them rolled over and mumbled something along the lines of, "C'mon capt'n! Give us a song..."

They managed to slip onto the ship unnoticed without any mishaps. Bartz hurried up to the wheel and turned to face the other two, a broad grin on his face at their success. "Alright! Let's go!" he said excitedly, punching a fist in the air.

Nothing happened. Reina and Galuf waited patiently. After a few minutes of listening to the small squeaks of the resident bats, Galuf called, "Hey, Bartz! Why aren't we going anywhere?"

"I don't know," growled Bartz, slapping a hand against the wheel in frustration, "It just won't move."

"There ain't much point tryin' to steal a ship you can't sail, is there?"

The trio looked up to find themselves trapped by the pirate crew. The corsairs silently parted to let their captain through. His long purple hair danced a small waltz behind him as he approached, a green headband keeping a large portion of it from covering his emerald eyes. Dressed in a regal blue overcoat with a dark green cloak billowing out behind him, he was quite a dashing figure. His boots made a heavy 'thunk' sound as the captain stepped forwards and drew his cutlass from its fancy sheath by his hip. He pointed it directly at the would-be thieves.

"Now, why don't you tell me why you're trying to steal my ship," he said coolly, "And mebbe I'll change my mind about killing you, hmm?"

* * *

Author Notes: Oh crap, I deleted my old author notes. Right. Omg, this's the most I've ever typed in one chapter. I feel proud. XP

The names are spelt they way I reckon I look better on the page. So that may mean both the Japanese names and the American names will appear. If you're not sure who's who, ask me. I've been playing the American one, but have gotten used to the Japanese names when I was searching around for references. I had to change some minor things so that it would seem more realistic. Well, at least in my eyes. ;;

Urgh, and heavy description isn't my thing. I usually let people imagine their own image. When I do heavy description, it never...flows right. --;; I'm not sure whether the clothing names are right either. What exactly is Reina wearing anyway? oO

Hehe, I'm back into writing battle scenes. I feel like I've improved since the last one I wrote, now that I've done a little research on weaponry (drools at the websites she found). And I like my blood and gore in fights. After all, it's to be expected.

Comments and critique are welcome. Feel free to tell me there's something wrong with what I've written, and I'll do my best to correct my mistakes.


	3. Whispering Wind

Author Notes: Credit for today's poem thingy to a friend of mine who inspired it from a conversation at the beginning of this year.

Caren – You're _still_ running around with your misspelt name I gave you, aren't you? Yes, _the_ poem. It's always the poem. Please don't get Meia to stab me for today's. (cowers) Or else I'll get Ten-chan to loom at her. XD No, I don't have time! I still have a crapload of things to do!

Atma Weapon III – Thanks. In the Playstation version Faris _does _speak piratey, but I think they over did it, and made the speech horrible to read. So I took a leaf from Al Kristopher's book and had it half/half.

B.B. Zuess – OMGWTFBBQ? Cumquat? And what random stories? I swear I don't have any. XP Did I mention you're an odd duck? A _very_ odd duck? Yus.

* * *

Final Fantasy V – Elementus Crystalis 

Part 1 – First World

Chapter 2 – Whispering Wind

* * *

Do you believe in fate? 

I'm not sure if I do.

How can you be sure,

That what's coincidence.

Wasn't 'fated' to happen?

* * *

Bartz unconsciously took a step back, his hand by the hilt of his sword. He didn't trust this pretty boy pirate and his crew of bandits to keep their word. A blur of pink went by as Reina pushed past him. 

"I'm sorry that we have intruded," Reina apologised, with a small bow, "but I'm the princess of Tycoon, Reina. Please, lend us your ship! I must get to the Wind Shrine immediately! My father is in danger!"

"Wha-at!" Bartz and Galuf gasped, eyes wide in shock.

If Reina was hoping to impress the pirates into taking her to the Wind Shrine, she was sorely disappointed. "Well, well, well," the captain said, the corner of his mouth turning up into a small smile, "We have quite the catch here. Not often royalty decides t' drop in."

He lazily walked up to Reina, gently forcing her to tilt her head up with his decorative cutlass. Bartz couldn't suppress the low growl that escaped his lips. The captain regarded the brunette with amusement. "Down boy," he said condescendingly with a smirk, "Unless you want t' see this pretty one's head roll."

"You wouldn't!" Bartz snarled viciously.

"I could and I would," the corsair replied, nudging his blade slightly further into Reina's skin. She winced as it drew a small line of blood across her neck. The captain withdrew the cutlass and pointed it at Bartz. "No one'd know except us," he continued softly, "and I'll make sure you and your friend's body's feedin' the fishes."

Bartz down bit down on his rage as he saw the other pirates draw their weapons, ready to defend their captain. "Please stop! I beg you!" cried Reina, her pendant slipping out from its hidden place and hanging freely from her neck. She stopped when she felt the prick of the blade return to her neck.

The captain stared at the dangling necklace as if caught in a dream. "That pendant..." he murmured faintly to himself. Recovering, he shouted to his crew, "Tie these landlubbers and throw 'em in a cell! I'll deal with them later."

"Aye aye, capt'n Faris!" chorused the crew.

They swarmed around the trio with ropes in their hands as Faris walked away, hair floating behind him, waving goodbye. The pirates tied the party's hands together, the knots tight and strong. Bartz toyed with the idea of trying to fight, but a pleading look from Reina made the idea seem more stupid than it already was.

They were lead below deck and into one of the cells. Before Faris' crew left, a pirate with the stereotypical eye patch over a scarred eye leered at them. "Now, don't be thinkin' of escapin', you lot," he said with a grin. As he walked away, the captive trio thought they heard him mutter under his breath, "Dunno why Faris dun't do away wit' the other two..."

Silence reigned in the cell as Bartz, Reina and Galuf mulled over the thought of being stuck in a pirate's ship. "This is just great," Galuf said loudly, "Who was the smart one who came up with the idea of stealing this boat, anyway?"

Bartz gave him a withering look. Kicking Galuf in the foot, he said, "Hey, I think it was _you_, old man."

Galuf hurriedly hopped away from the brunette's kicks. He leant back against the wall, his head resting against a couple of crates that were inside the cell. "Oooh, my head," he moaned, curling up as if in pain, "I can't remember anything."

Bartz glared at the bogus old man. "What a convenient excuse..." Turning to Reina, he said, "But Reina, you never told us you were a princess!"

The pink haired woman looked down in shame. "Ehe, I forgot completely," she replied sheepishly.

The other two gave her a look of utter disbelief. "You're joking, right?" Bartz demanded, hoping for _some_ semblance of sanity around her. To his utter horror, Reina shook her head and stuck out her tongue in strange, but oddly cute gesture of embarrassment.

Bartz' world came crashing all around him. The ground became a hole and hole soon became an incredibly deep pit. He had nothing but the shadows, looming high above him, to keep him company this pit of despair. All walls of resistance crumbled as he slumped in defeat resisting the urge to clamp his hands to his head and scream to the heavens the unfairness of it all.

...Not that he could do such a thing anyway...

Reina inconspicuously shuffled away from Bartz' melodramatic gloom, a dark cloud practically hovering above his head and shadows huddling in the corner he sat in despite the cell being fairly well lit from the lamps hanging outside.

_I was only worried about my father_, she thought uneasily.

As if reading her thoughts, Galuf discreetly hopped over to Reina. "How come you wanted to go to the Wind Shrine alone?"

Tilting her head so that she could see the wooden ceiling that would serve as their roof for the night, she replied, "If I told anyone I was going to the Wind Shrine, they'd try to stop me. Being the only successor to the throne, they can't afford to lose me. But..." She paused, taking a small breath.

"My father went there," she continued, "And with the wind stopping, I think something terrible might have happened to him."

Bartz' miniature 'despair aura' dissipated immediately. Standing up, he declared, "We'll find a way outta here so we can get to your father!"

"Yeah!" Galuf joined in, with an exuberant smile usually only seen on young children spreading across his old, wizened face.

Reina smiled, appreciating their support as they 'danced' crazily around their prison cell while she remained seated. They were strange people, but she couldn't help but grow to like them more by the minute.

"Oh mother, if only you could see me now," she whispered, a tiny tear slipping through her mirth unchecked.

* * *

Faris was not nearly as carefree or hyper as his prisoners. He leaned back on his chair in his private cabin and put his booted feet up on the table. In one hand he held a small wine glass with just a little red wine swirling at the bottom. There were a hundred questions running through his mind, all of them crashing into each other getting so muddied that he wasn't quite sure what the original questions were anymore. Despite all that, there was one question, just one, that remained vigilantly coherent within the chaos. 

"Why does the princess of Tycoon have the same pendant as me?" he asked aloud, voice barely a whisper.

Almost without meaning to, he reached inside his shirt and took out a pendant matching the one he saw hanging off Princess Reina's neck. It was simple in design, with a clear, teardrop shaped gem encircled by silver. However, when more closely examined, within the gem were small grains that created a small, completely three dimensional depiction of a dragon.

He shook his head, as if trying to clear all the question imps prodding his brain with their tridents. There were too many thoughts, too many memories and too many blanks. He would figure it all out in time...perhaps.

He was starting to get a headache again. The fractured flashes of a little girl mumbling "Cure, Cure2, Cure3" echoing in his mind were not helping him any.

Faris poured a little more wine into his glass.

* * *

Dawn brought the pirate crew an unusually hard morning's work as they loaded the ororO with supplies to replace the ones given to the Stargazer. The first mate and oddly enough, Faris himself, oversaw the loading process, making sure nothing went wrong. The captain's right hand man shouted orders to the crew, as the barrels of food, water as well as the all important grog were rolled in. Faris held a gloved hand to his forehead, the bright light of the sun and the loud noises of moving barrels sending waves of pain through his head. 

"Where're we headed, captain?" asked the first mate.

Faris raised his head, half closing his eyes. "To the Wind Shrine," he replied with a wince, pain lancing through his skull from the light reflecting off the water.

"Coz ya felt like it, or coz the _princess_ asked you to?" asked the man quietly, absentmindedly scratching the stubble on his chin.

Faris leaned back against the railing, letting his long falls of hair hang over the side. "One day your mouth is gonna get you into trouble, Keith," he said, avoiding the question, "Just get someone to bring the prisoners on deck, will ya?"

Faris didn't see the small smile spreading on Keith's face as he turned back to his work. "Hadrian, Kyle, Renan, Zeke! Go grab the prisoners!" he bellowed. "An' no harrassin' them, especially the pretty little flower, ya hear me?" he added, seeing the looks on their faces.

Faris watched all the men loading through his long lashes, though his mind was elsewhere. His thoughts drifted a little, wondering what he was going to do for the future. He'd most likely die in a decade or so, probably by the sword of another pirate wanting to take his place. But something in the back of his consciousness cried out in protest.

No, there was something else he wanted to do..._had_ to do.

"You're going to be doing something drastic, I know it," Keith said, barely loud enough for Faris to hear over all the noise the crew were making, despite the fact they had practically finished loading the ship.

The captain didn't honour him with a proper response, only snorting and closing his eyes completely. Keith laughed softly to himself. "Ah, capt'n," he mumbled to himself, "You're the only person I've met that can make a snort sound elegant."

"What's that you say?"

"Oh, nothing, nothing..."

There was some commotion as the pirates dragged their three prisoners onto the deck, one of them slapping Bartz on the back to get him moving with the flat of his sword. Faris frowned at the mistreatment of the brunette, making a mental note to discipline the pirate later.

"What'll we do with th' prisoners, captain?" a pirate with a wild, bloodthirsty look creeping into his eyes, "Cut 'em up and send their bits to their family?"

Faris glared frostily at the pirate. "Now why would I want to do that, Zeke?" Faris asked him.

"They intruded and tried to steal our ship! This calls for blood!" he retorted defiantly.

Faris narrowed his eyes in distaste. He'd never thought Zeke was as hungry for blood as this when he had stumbled across him. Perhaps seeing all that bloodshed as kid ruined his mind. "Not everything calls for blood. If you had your way back near Kerwin, all of our heads would be decoratin' Karnak's walls. Don't make me do something to you that I'll have to drink myself into a stupor later, Zeke."

The young pirate snarled and ground his teeth, a murderous aura hanging around him. Faris made a mental note to watch him carefully. Couldn't have any 'accidents' happening to himself later on, could he?

Jerking his head in the direction of the three prisoners, Faris shouted, "Cut their ropes!"

Everyone openly gawped at the pirate captain. "Why are you doing this?" asked Bartz suspiciously.

Faris' emerald green eyes stared coldly at Bartz long and hard. He sensed this man had already drawn a picture of how he depicted Faris, as a pirate captain, should act like. This sudden spillage of ink all over the picture from Faris' change in attitude towards him and his friends left him confused and distrustful. If he was still following the initial sketches of the picture, Faris was willing to bet that Bartz thought he was only doing this for his own gain. Tch, tales of pirate behaviour got around, but people forgot that the people the stories were centred around were human too.

He ought to be remembering that more often himself.

The captain's eyes softened slightly. "I have my reasons." Turning to his crew, he shouted, "Are you lot gonna cut their ropes or not?" he demanded, "Answer me!"

They hesitated, before shouting with gusto, "Aye aye, sir!"

They quickly slashed the prisoners' bonds before moving off to their assigned places on the ship. Bartz gingerly massaged the feeling back into his wrists. He was sure the pirates had tied his ropes extra tight on purpose.

"How in the world does this ship move without wind?" Reina asked curiously.

"Figure it out yourself," he replied shortly.

"How-" Reina began, confused.

She was cut off by a rumble underneath the ship. With an impressive roar, a long serpentine neck rose out of the water, somehow managing to not rock the schooner. Bartz, Galuf and Reina gasped in surprise and awe. The dragon stared at the three newcomers with his great beady eyes, their light green hue reflecting the same spirit as Faris himself. A collar attached to his neck was lashed to the schooner, though it was not there out of cruelty or ownership of the dragon, but so that he could pull the ship through the seas. Given the nature of the creature, he was the one that gave his services willingly, and could stop whenever he wanted.

Faris looked on with disapproval, but couldn't help but wonder why the dragon had shown himself. He was the ship's secret, a secret that had not been revealed to anyone other than Faris' crew. The dragon saw his expression and blinked his large eyes with a mischievous expression on his face. Faris couldn't help but feel a little lighter of hear, sure the dragon knew what he was doing, but he still sighed and shook his head in resignation. Well, he couldn't control every single thing that the dragon did.

"Syldra and I grew up together. We're practically brothers!" Faris said with an unexpected hearty laugh. "Syldra, meet..."

"Bartz, Galuf and me, Reina," Reina provided helpfully.

"Yeah, meet Bartz, Galuf and Reina."

Syldra gave them a wide, toothy grin as a second greeting before he slowly sank back into the water he came from, careful not to disturb the ship. Faris watched the patch of water where the dragon had left for a few more moments longer, then strode over to the stern. Taking hold of the wheel, he shouted, "Alright you lot! We're leaving!"

* * *

The Wind Shrine towered above them, the top of its pillars sculpted into fantastical flying dragons. The dragons didn't seem ferocious as most 'guardian' dragons are depicted, actually looking rather friendly and playful. However, dangerous looking dragons curled around the marble pillars' bases, suspicion etched onto their features. Reina felt that the creatures were almost daring them to defile the shrine so they could feed their unending hunger. 

The mismatched quartet climbed the marble stairs and entered the Wind Shrine to find a small group of men anxiously pacing around the room. All of them were muttering worriedly to themselves, their feet scuffing on the tiles. Reina saw this as a bad sign and hurried towards them.

"Princess Reina!" gasped one of the men, relief passing over his face, "I'm so glad you came!"

"What's going on?" she asked him, urgency in her voice.

She saw him give a double take at Faris, as if noticing the pirate for the first time.

"Um...er..." he began uncomfortably, glancing meaningfully at Faris.

"I don't pillage from shrines," Faris said flatly, not fooled in the least.

"Go on," Reina encouraged the man.

He paused, still hesitant about speaking of the Wind Shine's problems in front of someone he considered a common bandit. Oh what the hell. Things couldn't _possibly _get worse. "Monsters have been spawning from inside the shrine ever since the wind stopped," he replied, "They'll be down here any moment if something isn't done soon!"

Reina was suddenly gripped with worry. "What about my father? Where is he?" she asked, unconsciously clasping her hands tightly together.

"He went to the Cystal Room on the top floor, but he hasn't come back."

Reina's heart plummeted a few feet, her worry increasing tenfold. _Something terrible must have happened..._she thought, her anxiety building.

"Somethin' big must've happened," Faris said, turning towards the stairs leading up, "Let's go."

He left for the stairwell, cloak flowing behind him. Bartz and Galuf quickly followed, the old man pausing only ask "Are you coming or not?" with his eyes.

Reina nodded, swallowing her fears for her father and trailed after them.

They fought against blue-white serpents and mutated bats, but most of the monsters consisted of hideous black goblins, bigger and meaner than their brown skinned cousins. Reina couldn't help but be disgusted as their blood spilled in huge amounts across the marbled floor. She found that despite the martial arts training she had endured during her youth, it still wasn't quite the same as fighting actual opponents.

Her fist connected with a goblin's stomach, blasting the air out of it and leaving it stunned, giving her the time to slit its throat with her small dagger. It wasn't quite the same having resistance to her attacks, and Reina found that her fists were starting to ache from all the monsters she had struck.

The party fought their way through the creatures until they managed to get to the third floor, the floor leading to the Crystal Room. They sported few injuries, luckily, as the monsters only attacked in small packs, rather than large waves that would've easily overpowered them. Even so, they found that they were beginning to tire. Fortunately, the third floor seemed to be almost devoid of monsters, and they were grateful for the brief reprieve. However, they pushed on, urgency powering them forward.

A gigantic vulture-like creature loomed in front of them, completely blocking the stairway to the Crystal room. Its great wings were black, the feathers edged in fiery orange, and were raised threateningly, making the beast look much larger than it truly was. Despite having such enormous wings, the bird's equally large grey black body seemed much too heavy to be able to fly. Its clawed feet were as thick as Reina's arm and were digging holes in the tiles on the floor.

"Oh crap?" Bartz offered.

Glaring at them through tiny, glowing little piggy eyes, the bird opened its beak wide and gave a loud ear-splitting screech. The whole party understood it as a battle cry, saying, "Bring it on!"

Bartz and Galuf happily obliged, charging in. Faris followed a little behind, drawing his cutlass from its elaborate sheath. Reina trailed after them, having a sinking feeling that her small dagger would do little to damage such a monstrous beast.

Bartz found himself rolling to the side as the bird's talons came crashing down where he would've been had he kept running forward. Rolling to his feet, he looked up just in time to see the black wing before it smashed into him.

While the brunette was sent flying, Galuf leaped onto the creature's outstretched wing, holding on tightly as the bird went crazy trying to shake him off. Faris threw himself into forward roll as its flailings threatened to clobber him repeatedly in the head. Reina stayed out of range, wondering where she would fit into the fray as Galuf was finally slammed against the wall. Bartz picked himself up off the ground and shouted to Reina, "Try to get past its wings!"

He dashed off, swinging his broadsword, managing a vicious cut along the bird's belly. Faris cursed loudly, trying his best to roll out of the way as it went into a frenzy, stomping all around it. It raised its gigantic wings.

"Look out!" Reina yelled, sensing something bad about to happen.

Galuf looked up, only to see the bird begin to flap its wings. Suddenly he found himself slammed into far wall (again) along with the others. As quickly as the wind began, it stopped, dropping them all painfully to the floor. The monster screeched in triumph, and wrapped itself tightly in its wings.

"Ugh, pain," Bartz mumbled, leaning heavily on his broadsword.

Walking right up to the creature, Bartz blinked in surprise as the creature didn't do anything. It simply sat there, in a shell created by its wings. Galuf after a while strode up next to him, Faris and Reina following.

"Something's wrong here..." Reina mumbled, the other three warily approaching it.

Finally, Bartz tightened his grip on his broadsword, picked a spot in the winged shell at random and plunged the sword through it. Before he could even blink, the shell exploded open, slashing at him with the tips of sharp edged feathers at the end of each wing. Faris and Galuf were bodily swept aside from the barrage of attacks.

Reina, too far away to get close, saw a chance. The creature's attention was completely focused on Bartz. She held onto her dagger, unsure whether she'd be able to hit the mark. But remembering the danger her father was probably in, especially with all the monsters inside the shrine, she drew courage from it.

She threw her dagger with all her strength at the bird, the bird that was barring the way to her father. The beast roared as the dagger buried itself in the flesh just by the base of its beak, spreading its wings wide as it jerked wildly, crashing into the doorway.

"Get it!" bellowed Faris.

They didn't need to be told twice. Bartz and Gaulf jumped the bird, Bartz hacking and slashing at whatever part of the beast he could reach, Galuf doing the same, only he was pummelling with his fists. The monster went insane, but they kept on attacking, knowing that if they slowed down, it would eventually gain the upper hand again. Reina had prudently stayed where she was, knowing that she would be more of a setback if she leapt into the fray with her bare fists. Watching them a little way from the screeching bird, unable to join in without being knocked back by the creature's flailing wings, Faris heaved a long suffering sigh.

"Idiots," he muttered under his breath. "You're near its head!" he roared to Bartz, "Stop bashing its body and stab it in the eye or something!"

Bartz paused for a second before smacking himself in the head. "Now why didn't _I_ think of that?"

"Coz you don't have a brain?"

"I'll pretend I didn't hear that!"

He drove his broadsword into the bird's brain, the weapon going straight through to the other side with a splatter of blood and gore. Bartz dropped his sword as he clung for a dear life as the creature jerked crazily in its death throes before it finally crashed heavily to the ground, never to move again.

"Come on! Let's move!" cried Galuf, an instinctual need to hurry adding lines to his old face.

They ran to the Crystal Room, jumping the steps leading up to it two at a time. Reina reached the huge double doors first and attempted to push them open, but failed. As the others caught up to her, Reina backpedalled before furiously charging at the doors, bodily slamming into them. They swung open, and Reina, unable to stop her momentum, flailed her arms wildly to prevent herself from falling over herself. Right behind her, Galuf caught her just before she fell, but not before she took a step forward that sounded out a loud crunch. Just like stepping on shards of glass...

"The Crystal!" Reina gasped in horror, tearing herself away from the old man. "It's gone!"

Bartz knelt down and inspected the ground, lightly brushing his fingertips along the tiled floor. A few of the glassy shards clung to his fingers. After a closer examination, he said quietly, "It's not gone. It's shattered."

A ripple of shock came from his words, and afterwards, a combination of fear and wonder at how powerful the being that brought about the shattering must have been. Then, to the party's immense surprise, the larger shards of the broken Crystal flashed, their shining lights causing them to wince in the dark room.

"What...in the world?" Bartz said.

* * *

The dancing colours of the Fire Crystal flared for a moment, glowing reds, oranges and yellows. It flashed in time with a melody only it could hear. Then, settling into a soft shimmer of understanding, a small light emerged from the fire crystal and flew away.

* * *

A small ripple passed through the still waters, quickly becoming lost in the image of the Water Crystal. Suddenly the ripple changed into a violent waterspout in the middle of turbulent seas as the Crystal heard from a line of communication known only to it. Just as quickly as it had begun, the waterspout died down, the Crystal emitting a soft glow over suspiciously calm waters. The Water Crystal created a small light, following the Fire Crystal's example.

* * *

Plants and trees flourished contentedly in the Earth Crystal's image. The paradise soon disappeared when the Earth Crystal was informed of the recent happenings. The fertile soil soon became a barren wasteland, a chocobo's skull making its way into the picture. With a rumble that went unheard, the Earth Crystal split the illusion, letting a lone light shining brightly in the dark to tail its brethren.

* * *

The shards of the shattered Wind Crystal flashed in appreciation of the others' response to its call as their lights appeared in the room. Then, ponderously, it created its own light. However, unlike the others, it flickered dangerously, sometimes snuffing out completely before it came back. With a determined flare, the image of gale force winds howling through each broken piece of Crystal, the lights grew stronger and brighter. Satisfied, the winds ebbed away. 

The light from the Fire Crystal moved a little closer to the party, evoking the image of fiery infernos in their minds' eye, before drawing nearer to Faris. They 'heard' the next words, though their ears never registered hearing them at all.

_ The Spirit of Fire bestows its blessings upon Courage _

It flashed brightly, before disappearing. The Water Crystal's light conjured the image of a river and jumping trout, their scales shimmering in the sunlight, then floated towards Reina, who stretched out her hand to touch the light.

_ Blessings upon Kindness, from the Spirit of Water _

It too, shone brightly, before it winked out. Bobbing slightly, the light from the Earth Crystal created an illusion of gigantic, snow capped mountains, unscaleable to all except the most adaptable of creatures. It slid, almost shyly, towards Galuf, its words echoing in their minds as it flared once and faded away.

_ For Hope, the blessings of the Spirit of Earth _

The light of the Wind Crystal glided towards Bartz, its soft glow shimmering in the darkness. They all expected another illusion, but the Wind Crystal surprised them all by almost blowing them back into the wall with its sudden strong winds.

_ The Wind Spirit gives its blessings to Pursuit _

The winds died down as quickly as they had come into existence. The party blinked, wondering whether what had just taken place was real or not. Bartz was the first to say something, his voice trembling in awe.

"What just happened?" Bartz asked.

Galuf sighed in contentment, as if what had just happened had relieved him of a heavy weight upon his shoulders. "Feels warm."

Reina looked down at her empty hand, only just realising the light had disappeared from sight. She cupped her hands for a moment, holding the last dying images of water running through her fingers. "The Crystal's Spirits?" she murmured in fascination. "I don't understand..."

"Rei...na..."

A familiar man in armour seemed to fade in from where the Wind Crystal was usually placed. His sword lay lax in his gauntleted hand, the point of it dragging against the tiles. His body language alone spoke of immense physical weariness and possibly mental exhaustion as well. Even though his helmet and the darkness veiled most of the features of his face, Reina could still recognise him.

"Father!" she cried, relief and joy flooding into her voice.

There was no was no way that Reina could see the look of shock, as plain as the day, on Faris' face. The king of Tycoon didn't give them much time to get a proper hold of their emotions.

"You've seen what has happened to the Wind Crystal. The other three Crystals are in danger of shattering as well." His voice grew stronger, a sense of ominous doom lacing every word. "You must protect them!" he urged as he began to fade from view. "An evil spirit is about to return. One that will change the world as you know it into a place of darkness."

"Father!" Reina cried, running to his fading body. Her hands passed through his ethereal form.

The king of Tycoon's voice came back, much stronger, before he completely faded away. "Go, chosen warriors! Protect the Crystals at all cost!"

"Father!" Reina screamed, hands clutching for something that wasn't there anymore. She seemed to crumple inwards, bits of Crystal biting into her knees and palms as she knelt on the ground, tears of frustration and agony dropping to the tiles. "Father..." she whispered.

Six of the larger Crystal shards flashed brightly before they settled into a soft glow. "What?" Reina blinked through her tears.

Bartz bent down and picked up a shard. He could feel the energy pulsating through the Crystal pieces as the final words came through the party's minds.

_ Even parts of Crystal still have power. The shards hold the powers of the ancient heroes within. They won't make you invincible, but they will aid you and help you to learn as you journey. The rest is up to you. _

Bartz could almost see the images of the heroes long gone in the gentle pulses of the Crystal shard. "They're lending us their power?" he echoed in disbelief, staring at the Crystal in his hand as if it was an all powerful being that needed to be respected and revered.

"We need to get out of here," Galuf said practically, picking up the other glowing Crystal shards. "We can talk later."

"You guys go first," Reina said quietly. "I'll stay here for a little longer. I'll meet you at the ship."

They nodded in understanding and prepared to leave. Faris lagged behind a little, an almost gentle expression on his face. He squatted down and clapped a reassuring hand on Reina's shoulder. She looked up in surprise at the unusually kind gesture. Faris met her surprise with an honest smile before he stood back up and walked away to join the others.

Reina watched his cloak flow gracefully behind for a while, then turned back to the shattered crystal shards. She smiled, picking out the pieces that had gotten stuck in her hands. There was still hope. That was all she needed to keep going.

* * *

Author's Notes: Hm...I was doing a little research on piratey stuff, and I got a little confused. It's kinda hard to keep true to the way of life of the pirates in the past, when in FFV the pirates act differently from how pirates in reality did. So I guess my representation of pirates isn't really right, both ways. 

I'm not really sure of the usage of double take, so help on that would be appreciated. Argh, and for some reason, I think most of the talking seems to go to Faris and Reina. It's the same all the time! I seem to breathe more life into (ackt! Crap! Spoiler! I forgot about that...), I mean, into certain characters. If anyone thinks I'm abandoning Bartz or Galuf or anything and not developing their character enough, please tell me.

Also, if anyone could help me with the monsters that are roaming about in the duration of the game, like say, what monsters there are in the North Mountain, it would be most appreciated, since I can't remember what lurks where. I will fall over and die now. Before I make an attempt to make my chapters longer.


End file.
